'Leverage' Season 3, Episode 13 Recap (Season Finale)

For much of the season, the 'Leverage' team has been jumping through hoops because of the mysterious influence exerted by the beautiful woman whom only Nate has met, 'The Italian.' And in a game of leverage, she had it because of her connections to Dominic Moreau. If Nate and the team didn't do her bidding, he'd be returned to prison.

So when the opportunity arose in this show to turn the tables on the Moreau, there was no question that Nate and company would go for it. "Let's go steal a federal witness," was the start of the con called the Cuban sandwich.

Naturally, there had to be a Robin Hood angle, and there was. An average, poor schnook of a sports fan had been Bernie Madoff-ed by an ex-goon hockey player named Mark Vektor. Vektor was a brute and a bully, but he was also the key to getting to Moreau ... in the most round about way. In fact, the scam they pulled on him was not unlike the scene in 'The Godfather, Part II,' where the senator got caught with the dead hooker in a Corleone brothel ... which was how Michael got the senator to support him during the congressional hearings.

In this case, there wasn't an actual corpse, just Parker playing dead. But before that, she was winningly impish as a sexy tomboy. In order to get Vektor to rat out Moreau, Vektor had to think he was up to his neck in trouble that required a better immunity deal than he already had.

That wasn't the only spotlight on Parker, though. She also rekindled her friendship with McSweeney, the FBI agent. You have to wonder if she might really be interested in the guy if she wasn't on the other side of the law. As fake FBI agent Hagen, she succeeded in freaking Vektor out while he was testifying for the grand jury.

The Italian (Elisabetta Canalis) showed up at the end, but by then Nate had figured out how Vektor had hidden the codes. It was complicated, involving colors and values, but it made sense. And more than that, it gave Nate the leverage he needed to push back in defense of the team. He told the Italian, "I assure you, I am more than the man you thought I was," and he is.

But Nate seemed to have played right into her hands by choosing to go after Moreau on his own. The choice to pursue Moreau, as he told Sophie, won't be for money ... it'll be for justice. While that's noble and good, will it also be dangerous and risky for the team? And at what price?

There were several bits of business that made this episode work, like Hardison and Elliot going undercover. Even though they were only supposed to retrieve a document from the court, Hardison and Elliot were posing as Boston cops, complete with a squad car and an unwanted assignment. That's when they're at their best, forced to do the job while sniping at each other and their peccadilloes.

About half-way through the show, when Vektor volunteered that he had all the dirt on Moreau and was ready to sing, you suspected that it was too good to be true. And the way Nate was lingering at the window was a tip-off that there was something afoot. Later, the Italian claimed that the sniper was a contract killer who wasn't connected with her, but if that's true, who sent him? Why would Moreau want Nate rubbed out before being able to exploit him?

Presumably we'll get these answers in the last three episodes of the season, but that won't be till December.

By the way, the episode was directed by Jonathan Frakes ('Star Trek: The Next Generation').

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7 Comments

I have to agree with Mike Davis: Elisabetta Canalis, tho drop dead gorgeous and seemingly a very lovely person, is a crappy actor. I blame Clooney for not giving tips to his lady love before she took the part.

So this wasn't technically the "Season Finale" then. It's more of a "Summer Cliffhanger Hiatus Break Finale". Great episode. I thought that the best part of the episode was Hardison's and Eliot's relationship. They get more and more hilarious every episode.

I like Leverage but it's starting to get bland for me. The con of the week are always fun but we still don't know much about the characters. After the con is accomplished that seems to be it there isn't much after. There is no overlying plot to the show its all con and that it!

The Romance between Hardison and Parker after they profess their deep like for one another is never touched on in the subsequent episodes.

We still don't know who Sophie is, if she is royalty or her real name.

we know absolutely nothing about Elliot.

And this Moreau, who I thought was going to be the focus of this season, is only really mentioned in 3 episodes.

After 3 seasons I'm still waiting for this show to pick up it feels like all filler. Strong 1st season and then I've been let down ever since.